AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, April 15

AAP General News (Australia)
04-15-2006
AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, April 15
Midday Round-Up: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AAP RTV FILE AT 1130


Villawood (SYDNEY)

About 80 refugee activists have gathered near Sydney's Villawood detention centre ..

to continue a weekend of protests against the government's new hardline immigration policies.

And a large police contingent is on hand to monitor the protest.

About 80 activists gathered at Sydney's Holsworthy army barracks yesterday .. demanding
access to 160 immigration detainees .. who'd been evacuated from Villawood amid asbestos
fears.

Their action kicked off a weekend of national pro-refugee protests .. with similar
protests in Melbourne and possibly Adelaide likely over the Easter weekend.

A protest outside Kirribilli House .. where the prime minister resides in Sydney ..

is also being organised for tomorrow morning.



Easter Pope (ROME)

Pope BENEDICT has reflected on the biblical account of the suffering of JESUS CHRIST
.. leading thousands of pilgrims and tourists in the annual Way of the Cross procession
at the Colosseum in Rome to mark Good Friday.

Opening the late-night procession with a prayer .. BENEDICT gripped the wooden cross
as he began the procession .. moving briskly along the route.



Iran Mideast (TEHERAN)

Iran's President has called Israel a rotten dried tree .. that will be annihilated
by a single storm.

At the opening of a conference on supporting the Palestinians .. MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD
also said Israel is a permanent threat to the Middle East.

He said the land of Palestine .. which includes all of Israel .. Gaza and the West
Bank .. will be freed soon.



The day before .. AHMADINEJAD had announced Iran had successfully enriched uranium
.. a significant step toward the large-scale production of enriched uranium .. required
for either fuelling nuclear reactors or making nuclear bombs.



Mideast Govt (GAZA CITY)

Palestinian PM ISMAIL HANIYEH says the Hamas-led government won't cave in to financial
pressure from the west.

The US and EU consider Hamas .. whose suicide bombers have killed hundreds of Israelis
.. a terrorist group.

But HANIYEH says Arab and Muslim nations have a duty to help his beleaguered government
.. and he's accused political rivals of forming an unholy alliance with the west.

Western nations have suspended tens of millions of dollars in direct aid to the Palestinian
Authority .. demanding it renounce violence .. and recognise Israel's right to exist.



Drownings (BRISBANE)

Two three-year-old boys have drowned in separate incidents in south east Queensland.

Police say a search party found the body last night of one child .. who'd drowned in
a lake after disappearing from a family picnic at Forest Lake .. in the afternoon.

And a second three-year-old boy died when he fell into a water tank around 7.30 pm
on a property at Kurwongbah .. north of Brisbane.



UK Climate (LONDON)

In a grim warning on climate change .. the British government's chief scientist says
the world must start to tackle global warming immediately .. even if it takes decades
to produce results.

Sir DAVID KING has told BBC radio .. there will otherwise be a three-degree Celsius
rise in temperature this century .. and few eco-systems on Earth will be able to adapt.

Even worse .. KING says .. up to 400 million people will be at risk of hunger .. because
20 million to 400 million tonnes of cereal production will be lost.



briefly in other news................




Australia's Easter holiday road toll stands at eight .. after two single-car accidents
in Victoria early today.



Two three-year-old boys have drowned in separate incidents in south east Queensland.




A rescue helicopter's winched 11 people out of a Blue Mountains canyon .. including
a woman who broke her leg late yesterday.




Tornadoes have torn across the US state of Iowa .. ripping walls off an Iowa City church
.. and killing a woman in a mobile home.



and in sport.........................



Golf PGA (HILTON HEAD)

Australia's AARON BADDELEY has fired a 67 to share second place at nine under in the
Heritage Classic second round at Hilton Head, South Carolina.

In the lead is American JIM FURYK, who birdied two of the last four holes for a four-under-par
67 and a two-shot lead.

BADDELEY, 25, got himself back into the leadership group after he magnificently holed
out from 150 metres for an eagle-two at the last.


Cricket Aust (CHITTAGONG)

The Australian bowling trio of spinner SHANE WARNE and fast bowlers BRETT LEE and STUART
CLARK will undergo fitness tests today ahead of the second Test against Bangladesh which
begins tomorrow.

The Australians will train this afternoon for the first time in the southern port city
of Chittagong but could still be given until the morning of the match to prove their fitness.

WARNE is battling a shoulder problem while LEE and CLARK are exhausted following four
Tests in four weeks on two different continents.



League (SYDNEY)

St George Illawarra attempts to bounce back from last week's embarrassing NRL thrashing
to Newcastle today when they head to Brookvale Oval to meet Manly.

In other matches tonight Penrith and Melbourne re-introduce rugby league to Adelaide
with a clash at Hindmarsh Stadium while the New Zealand Warriors visit Canberra.

Last night Brisbane beat the Sydney Roosters 24-6 at Aussie Stadium.



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